Smyrna times., 1887-02-16
Love on a Toboggan.

Love on a TOboggan.
6 tell you young man, you shall not
marry my niece"
And tell you madame, will-if l
can"
She is engaged to my son Tom"
She is engaged to me, and l don't
care a snap of my fingers for your son
Tom"
"sir, your language is ungentle-
manly"
Madame, so is yours"
We were both at white heat; Mrs.
Jupp, the aunt, the legal guardian OF
my adored Julia, positively trembled
with rage, and looked around the room
as if in search of some weapon with
which to attack me. She was large and
stout, had a deep bass voice, and hid
eOus wiry curls, and wore glasses OF
such an intense magnifying power that
she seemed to be always glaring at one
like a hungry Gorgon, (by the way
what is a GOrgon?l and could drive
men away from the vicinity of her
niece-my dear lullaby simply favor
ing them with a stony stare, as fixed
and awful as that of the Sphinx.
Leave my house, sir" she said al
last, rising and pointing to the door
with a very fine dramatic action. An
ger is more becoming to a large, stout
woman than to a small one -unles!
she gets red in the face.
q will not 60 until you give IN,
some better reasons for the stand yot
take in this matter"
"I have told you once-she is en-
gagged to my SON"
"I don't believe it," l said boldly
though perhaps rudely but my lovely
Julia was reflected in distant mirror
smiling at me and shaking her head
and was reckless. Mrs. Jupp gasped
and if a magnified glance from he
glaring eyes could have killed me,
would have died on the spot.
Mr.. Edgerton, if my sou wer
here"
"Confound your son !" said l.
really used much stronger word, for
getting for a moment where l was.
am not quite certain what hit me
but think it was a foOtstoOl. as | after
ward found u gilded claw-in my Goa
pocket. A man servant, whom ha
often fed in other days, picked me "a
and escorted me to the door, murmul
ing sympathetically the while, tina
To be sure, Mrs. Jupp was a leetl
uncertain at times" Uncertain! Their
is nothing uncertain about her. an
a small man, and a tremendous bum
on my forehead is conspicuous; nor i
one black becoming to any one, so
skunk down the street like a criminal
vOwing vengeance on the old tyrant il
petticOats, who only wanted Julia t
marry her son in order to keep th
money in the family, for Julia wa
quite an heiress, though of course tn
fact had no weight with me.
Business of some kind had brough
Mrs. Jupp to St. Paul, and there sh
took house and established hersel
with her lovely niece for the winter
In the first stages of my acquaintanc
l was of much service to the old lady
and ran about and did her miserabl
errands for her like a born idiot. ais
had every opportunity Of falling in low
with her niece, and this did as rapid
as possible and with such success tina
in two months from their arrival al
nOunced our engagement to the aun
with the above described result, thOug
it must be understood that have onl
given the termination of my negotii
tiOns-the preliminaries being tam
and uninteresting. The next day Isper
in my room trying experiments wit
raw beef as applied to black eye, an
nursing various schemes of vengeanc
and the lump on my forehead at tn
same time.
The day following ventured dow
to my office, aud from there sent an in
passionate note to my darling Julia,
note filled with despair, VOWS Ofeterni
love and appropriate quotations. NJ
note was returned by the grinniu
Office boy, who said the old lady ha
opened it in his presence, read it alou'
and told him to take it back to thi
little fOOl-meaning me-and adde
that she would box his-the said boy
ears if he ever brought another.
discharged the boy on the spot, and to-
him he was an idle, gOod-for-nOthiI
vagabond. During the day a frier
called in, and after some stupid driv
which almost drove me crazy, said, a
propos of nothing: by the way | call'
on the Jupps last night. Old lady sa.
they leave here on Saturday and a
going straight to Europe. Didn't s,
the fair Julia-always thought yC
were little smitten there, you know
Smittenl Yes, by both of them.
the fool only knew that he was sittin
so to speak, ON a volcano, he might
away. He did go away at last. and
! ,ol;a,,ad ,,,x, faal;n0a hxy throuioo, 4